Seeing orange: area roadwork starts

Utah Department of Transportation-hired crews have arrived on the thoroughfare that links Deer Valley and the other neighborhoods in Park City, setting up the notorious construction barrels.

The work on the road, part of the state highway system and also known as S.R. 224, started Monday, with the crews lowering manholes in anticipation of the major work. And highway officials are warning traffic will back up at some points.

"There’s going to be some delay. I don’t know what the delay’s going to be," says Deryl Mayhew, a Wanship-based engineer for the department.

The work is planned in three phases, starting in the Snyderville Basin.

( June 14-17, the stretch of the road between Kimball Junction and Old Ranch Road will be milled and then resurfaced.

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( June 28-July 1, the crews will be on the road between Kearns Boulevard and the Old Town roundabout.

( July 12-July15, S.R. 248 between its intersection with S.R. 224 and Wyatt Earp Way was will be worked on.

Mayhew says most of the work is scheduled to be done before the Park City Kimball Arts Festival, set Aug. 4-5 on Main Street.

The work is part of the state’s efforts to keep the road in good shape. The roadwork covers 8.2 miles and Mayhew says the budget is $2.2 million.

"The existing surface is wearing out," Mayhew says.

S.R. 224 is the busiest road into and out of Park City, connecting the city with Kimball Junction. It is the most direct route between the Salt Lake Valley and Park City.

In each part of the work, Mayhew says, the crews will tear up the road on Thursday and Friday night. They will repave the road on the following Saturday and Sunday.

He says construction barrels will be removed from the road each day at 3:30 p.m. but traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction during hours the crews are working. During the off hours, all the lanes will be open.

At City Hall, officials have been expecting the work and City Engineer Eric DeHaan, who monitors roadwork for the local government, earlier reported to the city’s elected officials the work was pending.

"This is learn how to enjoy highway construction," DeHaan says, predicting the roadwork will be "inconvenient." "It’s not going to be so bad, it will change everybody’s driving patterns."